EFTM

How to keep your Samsung Galaxy SII safe from automatic factory reset

With the USSD vulnerability exposed today, current users of Samsung Galaxy SII phones should be very careful with the links you follow and click on until you have managed to fix your phone. EFTM has the details on exactly how to fix it, and check if it’s been fixed.

Firstly, are you affected? Click this link (Safe) to check. If your phone switches to a dialer screen and shows a pop up prompt with your IMEI number, you are indeed vulnerable.

If your phone switches to dialer and shows a number within your dialer, but has not actually dialed, you are okay.

Next you need to set Dialer One to be your default dialing application. To do this, open an email with a phone number in it (someones email signature perhaps) and click it to dial. A pop up will ask you if you want to use Dialer One or Dialer (the default dialing application). Tick “Set as Default”, and choose Dialer One.

Now, visit the test site again (Click Here). If you get your IMEI the default dialer is still the original. If you get a grey dial screen with a number code in it, you’re safe! Just don’t hit dial on any strange numbers like that!

Once fixed, this should be what you see, instead of your IMEI number

Let us know how you go.

The reason this is a risk is those nasty scammers out there. Imagine you get a Direct Message on Twitter or a message on Facebook, or even an email that looks like this:

Here’s what a scam link might look like, making you think its something to click, but instead when you go there, your phone is wiped!